Resolution: Bad Star

by M. L. Baldauf

  He turned to Veritas and found that she was staring at younger version of herself. The woman next to this doppelgänger looked like a slightly older version of her. Her mother, Harper thought. Even from her profile, he could tell the current Veritas was filled with profound sadness. He wasn’t sure how to comfort her, so he thought it better to not interfere. As a means of diversion, he tried to find the watcher who captured this memory.

  "This is my memory," she said, as if he had said out loud what he was doing. "By this time, no one in my tribe would ever receive a watcher’s memory again."

  "What is the celebration?"

  "An expedition had just returned an Earth week before with great news. Our brothers and sisters from Earth had colonized other star systems. We had all seen the colonies firsthand, through the watchers’ memories."

  "They didn’t make contact with us," Harper pointed out.

  "No. That was a decision for the elders to make. To make contact, or wait for you to find us."

  "I can understand that. Why weren’t you joining in the festivities," he replied, pointing to the memory version of Veritas.

  "I was a guest of honor. It had also just been confirmed that I had the gift. The ability to bend space. Between the two announcements, I was overcome with excitement. It was also the worst day of my life."

  "Why?"

  She didn’t answer, but the music and dancing stopped suddenly. With the new silence, Harper could hear a loud whistling noise from outside. It grew louder and lower as time passed, and culminated in a ground shaking explosion somewhere nearby.

  The memory Veritas got up from her seat and rushed for the door. Present Veritas went after her and Harper followed. He noticed as they left, everyone in the room had frozen. It took a moment to realize that they were simply stuck in last position she remembered them. He found himself on a familiar street, just outside the building. Hearing more of the whistling, he looked to the sky to see the familiar sight of Salaxian orbital bombardment charges.

  "We had already heard of Salaxians," she said without looking out at the sky, but instead at her frightened younger self. "We thought if we stayed out of their way, we would be safe. Our warriors constantly patrolled the perimeter of our system, but when the Salaxians came, they were overwhelmed.

  A blast of energy fell nearby. Harper shielded his eyes, and when the dust settled, he realized it had badly damaged the building they had just left. Memory Veritas had realized it to, and ran back inside. They followed her in, and found the room darkened and filled with dust. The partygoers lay injured or dead, strewn about the floor. Memory Veritas ran straight for the platform where her and her mother had been sitting minutes before. Harper had to turn away from it when he realized what had happened. "Are you sure you want to see this," he asked.

  He could hear, even in her telepathic voice, the pain she was feeling for reliving this moment. "Memory is not a collection of moments stacked up against each other. It is a whole thing that must be watched completely, or not at all."

  "I’m sorry."

  The artificial light had been knocked out, but by the light pouring in from the street he could see memory Veritas sobbing over her mother’s lifeless form. The sobbing stopped without warning, and he saw her rise. She turned to him with tear soaked cheeks. He knew that it was not him she was looking at, because he was not actually there that day, but the stare was still unnerving. Equally disturbing was the look that had now taken hold on her face, not of sadness, but of rage.

  Memory Veritas suddenly broke into a run. She sprinted out the door, and present Veritas followed. "Come, John." Harper ran after both versions down the central street. He quickly realized that this was the very same city he had hiked through to investigate the pyramids. Both versions of Veritas were impossibly fast, and the effort to keep up with them was exhausting him. It was only when he realized that his actual body wasn’t running, that he stopped feeling pain, and was able to close the distance.

  Memory Veritas was running fearlessly as buildings to either side exploded under the bombardment. Another familiar sight caught Harper’s eyes as he continued to close the gap. The shuttle they had found in the woods was sitting untouched to his right side. He saw a group of Martians running to the vehicle, but they were stopped cold by rubble from another exploding structure. This landmark made it clear to him where Veritas was headed.

  When all of her people were running, she was going to where she could help them. He was filled with a sense of astonishment at her bravery. He knew at the time she was just barely considered a young adult, but in the face of the annihilation of her tribe, she was running to the rescue.

  Harper saw something that nearly stopped him in his tracks. As they approached the pyramid door, memory Veritas and her present counterpart merged into one image. Completely unfamiliar with telepathic memory sharing as a matter of fact, Harper could only assume that this was a sign that Veritas was becoming so enthralled in the memory, that she was losing the ability to remain an objective observer. As a literally captive audience in this realm, he was uncomfortable with the potential consequences of his host losing control, but there was nothing he could do about it.

  They made it halfway across the display room before Veritas remembered to turn around and shut the doors behind them. He looked around the room while he waited for her. The displays were spotless, and the holographic emitters were in full working order. Though still empty, the place had a sense of life that had long faded by the time of his previous visit.

  When Veritas had secured the door, she ran to the central chamber. Veritas all but flew up the stairs to the peak, where she seated herself in the chair and tilted it so she was facing up into the dome. Harper watched in wonder as what she saw above them changed. The points of light that poured through the holes in the dome, brightened, and the space between faded to pitch black. Amongst the stars, planets faded into existence.

  "I knew it would take some time for our ships to evacuate," Veritas explained. "When they did, I could open a portal to where the tribe Aries resided. As I waited, my rage grew. Though my people abhorred violence, it began to occur to me that my power could be used as a weapon."

  Harper watched as Salaxian ships faded into existence, seemingly on the outer reaches of the system, heading straight for the planet. A beam of light shined out into the dark, and terminated near one of the advancing Salaxian ships. The wormhole opened and sucked the Salaxian ship unwillingly into its vortex. "Some of them I threw into distant corners of the galaxy," Veritas continued. "The others, I destroyed with the power of the stars."

  Another wormhole opened near a battle group of Salaxian ships. Harper feared for a moment he might be blinded when the other side of the portal revealed an unknown star, but as the image was only in their minds, he was safe. The Salaxian ships were almost instantly incinerated, and the nearby planet was reduced to dust.

  Harper watched for what seemed like an eternity as she opened one wormhole after another, visibly losing strength with each one. By the time she stopped, every planet in the system but the one they were on had been turned into dust, and the only Salaxian ships left were the ones in orbit. "The evacuation ships never came," Veritas explained, tears streaming down her face. The room faded to black, so only she was visible. "In the end, I was the only one to survive. The Salaxians were impressed by my demonstration, and decided to capture me, rather than kill me."

  Chapter 16

  Revenge

  July 4th 2213

  1030

  Redacted

  Harper was flying toward the void again, the white light rushing past his nonexistent head. When it ended, he was standing exactly where he had been when the whole experience began. Glenn looked at him as they released Veritas’ hands with a solemn expression that Harper didn’t think the jovial major was capable of.

  “So, they built this place, and forced you to use your power to help them extend their reach,” Harper said.

  She nodded. “At first, I re
sisted, but their torture techniques are very painful, not fatal. They found your species through our records, and chose you as their next target. You were new to interstellar travel, so they thought you would be easily dominated. To be honest, I feared the same”

  “They were almost right. We had put war behind us. We didn’t even have an interstellar military when they first attacked," Glenn added

  “But you survived,” Veritas replied with a smile. “And you found us. I am the last of my tribe, and I may finally be able to repay our share of the debt.”

  “For the moment, you may just have to owe us another one. We’re going to unhook you from all this and take you away from here. Then we’ll blow up the building too, just for good measure.”

  Her head turned forward suddenly. “Someone is here.”

  Harper and Glenn raised their weapons and turned on their heels. Climbing the stairs of the pyramid was a Salaxian soldier, trying to make his way quietly to the top. Harper could only assume he hadn’t already fired for fear of hitting Veritas. They opened fire on him, but missed as he dove off the pyramid onto the platform below, and out of sight.

  They scanned the perimeter of the platform, looking for any sign of the Salaxian soldier. There was a dull crack and a sharp pain in Harper’s jaw. A thick metal bar collided with his face, the pain causing him to lose his balance and topple off the plateau. When he overcame the pain and was able to concentrate, he noticed the bag of explosives had slipped off his shoulder before he began his slide down the side of the pyramid. He reached for it, but the laws of gravity kept it consistently out of reach.

  When the bag reached the bottom of the slope, it hit the guard rail on the platform before falling into the pit below. Harper turned himself so that his head didn’t hit the rail next, and landed on the platform. He managed to absorb most of the impact before his rib cage struck the railing, but felt one of his ribs crack. Every breath drawn sent shooting pain through the right half of his body. The Salaxian soldier gave him an evil grin as he raised his weapon for the easy kill.

  Harper reached for his gun, but it hadn’t made the trip down with him. Instead, he found in his lap the same length of pipe that had hit him before he fell. He gripped the pipe and launched himself at the soldier, striking the rifle as hard as he could. In his surprise, the Salaxian soldier pulled the trigger, and the bent barrel caused the weapon to explode. Harper took advantage of the soldiers shock giving gave him a swift kick to the chest.

  The Salaxian fell with a ground shaking thud. Harper raised the pipe for an overhead swing, but as he brought it down towards the Salaxian’s bleeding face, he was blocked by what was left of the shattered rifle. The Salaxian hooked Harper’s leg, sending him sprawling on the floor. By the time he recovered, the Salaxian was on his feet as well, and advancing. Harper’s mind raced. They were taller, faster, and stronger. He wasn’t going to win in hand-to-hand combat using any of those attributes. So far, the only apparent advantage humans had was their minds. He was going to have to think his way through the situation.

  He glanced down at his weapon, the side facing him had been broken off at an angle. With enough force… Harper planted his feet and feigned a swing from the right as the soldier approached. As expected, it was blocked. Harper tasted iron in his mouth as the rifle stock was driven into his jaw. He managed to keep his balance, and quickly took advantage of the opening. Flipping the pipe around, he leaned in, and jammed the pipe into the soldier’s heart. Harper resisted the urge to be ill at the sensation of the cold metal warming by the Salaxian blood that flowed through it. A pang of sympathy struck him as he felt the alien’s cardiac muscle make one last futile attempt to pump.

  He watched the devilish grin melt away in lieu of surprise and horror. The Salaxian soldier collapsed onto the rail, and his high center of gravity sent him over into the abyss below. Harper sighed but immediately regretted it. The pain from his broken rib was ever more apparent as the adrenaline wore off.

  The climb was much slower as he tried to control his breathing. When he reached the top, Glenn was visibly relieved to see him. "Is that blood," Glenn asked, pointing to the splatter of moisture across the front of Harper's uniform.

  "Not mine. Veritas, I lost the explosives, but we can get you out of here anyway. If you’re really the last of your tribe, they won’t be able to reach us anymore with you gone."

  Veritas gave him a sympathetic smile. "I am sorry, John. I am afraid I cannot let you do that."

  "Why not?"

  "As soon as I am disconnected, the catwalk will detach and fall into the pit. Harper looked at the catwalk and could see where the catwalk was designed to disengage. His heart dropped as he realized he was out of ideas. "That is okay, John. I will finish your mission for you."

  "How can you do that?"

  "The crystal you have in your pocket."

  Harper furrowed his brow as he felt his pockets. His fingers found the bulge in the lower right pocket of his jacket. Pulling the object out, he found himself holding the pyramid shaped crystal, glowing again with that supernatural light. Until this moment, he had forgotten that he had grabbed it before this mission, and couldn’t remember why he did. "What is it?"

  "It creates a telepathic link. When you are ready, I will know. I will send you home and destroy this moon in the process."

  "I could never ask you to make that sacrifice."

  "You do not need to. I am the last of my tribe. I am obligated to pay our debt to humanity. With one act, I will settle the debt, and avenge my people."

  Harper looked at Glenn for backup, but he had nothing to say. He looked back at Veritas and tried to think of an alternative, but quickly realized that she wouldn’t accept any. "If you insist."

  * * *

  "Hull breach on F deck," Sato shouted.

  "Fire," Parker ordered. Resolution unleashed a volley of missiles on the attacking Salaxian cruiser. Parker heaved a sigh of relief as the Salaxian ship disintegrated. The relief, however, was short-lived, as two warp flashes appeared to the port side.

  Two contacts, both cruisers," Sato announced."

  "Come on, John," Parker muttered. “We can’t take much more of this." The Resolution had hull breaches on four decks, and many of the Thompson point-defense guns were inoperative. The other ships in the battle group weren’t doing much better. They were running low on ammunition, and had lost four fighters in the groups assigned to Resolution alone.

  Anatoli called out, "I have Badstar on the line. He’s coming in with Orion and two shuttles.

  "Only two?"

  "Affirmative."

  "Captain, do you want us to recall the fighters," Parker’s voice came through the COM.

  "Negative. Tell them to stick with their ships till further notice," Harper replied

  There was a bright flash to his starboard side. Looking over, he saw smoke pouring out of both of Glenn’s primary engines. Harper flipped his fighter over and opened fire on the lone Salaxian fighter that was tailing them. He dispatched it quickly and turned back towards the ship.

  "Orion, are you okay?"

  "Yeah, but both of my engines are down, and my thrusters aren’t functioning."

  "Can you drop your landing skids?"

  "Affirmative. It's the only thing that IS working."

  Harper looked at the speed gauge.

  200 kph R

  At that speed, Glenn would likely fly straight through the Resolution before the artificial gravity could bring him to a landing. "Badstar to Resolution Actual, all stop and angle up fifteen degrees. Prepare the flight deck for a crash landing."

  He flinched as he gave the order. This maneuver would keep Glenn from missing landing completely, but the impact could also kill him. Unfortunately, it was their best shot.

  "Oh, great. Crash landings are my favorite kind," Glenn exclaimed.

  "Just relax, Major. Get ready to brace for impact."

  The aft flight deck door was approaching at a nerve-racking pace. As the ship filled the
view of his canopy, he discovered that, under the circumstances, 15 degrees looked a lot steeper than he had anticipated. Harper angled his fighter to compensate, and fell back as Glenn’s fighter did a near nose dive into the flight deck. The front landing skid quickly buckled, sending the fighter into a sliding spin. The rear landing skids buckled shortly after, and the craft was nearly halfway down the deck before it finally came to a stop.

  Harper landed his fighter nearby. By the time he stepped down from the canopy, the deck crew had extinguished the flaming engines, and were extracting Glenn from the cockpit. By the way Glenn’s head lolled from side to side as they lifted him out of the crumpled cockpit, Harper could tell he was out cold. He wanted to stay and check on the major’s condition himself, but knew he had to get to the bridge quickly.

  When he reached the top step, Parker leaped out of the Captain's chair. She looked down in horror at the copious amount of blood on his uniform. He raised his hand to ward off the impending question. "Not mine."

  He sat in the Captain's chair with enough force to irritate his cracked rib, but tried not to let it show on his face. Parker sat next to him. "Ready to go when you are. Should we recall the fighters now?"

  "Negative. They'll be following us home under their own power," Harper replied as he pulled the crystal from his pocket.

  "They’ll be stuck in their cockpits for weeks."

  "Not exactly." He gazed into the crystal, and through the supernatural glow he could again see the jet black pupil staring back at him. He hesitated for a long moment before softly speaking to Veritas one last time. "We're ready." The eye blinked, and Harper could swear he saw the hint of a tear, but the eye faded into the light and disappeared.

  Parker tilted her head and looked at him as if he had lost his mind. "Who are you talking to?"

  "I’ll explain soon." A moment later, a beam of light shot out from the moon and terminated 20 kilometers off their port bow. The luminous whirlpool formed quickly.